Santa claus bank



p 31953 M. J. SINGER 2,635,383

SANTA CLAUS BANK Filed March 29, 1948 INVENTOR. Mormon J. SINGER.

Patented Apr. 21, 1953 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE SANTA CLAUS BANK Monroe J. Singer, New York, N. Y.

Application March 29, 1948, Serial No. 17,620

Claims.

This invention relates to a musical bank device.

An object of the present invention is to provide an improved musical bank, represented as the figure of Santa Claus carrying a basket, in which, when a coin is put in Santa's hand and the mechanism is wound, Santa will deposit the coin in his basket, accompanied by a Christmas song. The basket may have a door provided with a lock, and a coin slot, so that the unauthorized taking out of coins is impossible.

A further object is to provide a bank as aforesaid, which can be wound up without displacing any of the external features of the device and without necessitating the tipping of the device.

Another object is to provide a device as aforesaid provided with toothed cam wheels assuring accurate operation during coin depositing.

A further object is to provide a device of the aforesaid type in which cam wheels provided with rubber friction edges are employed instead of toothed cam wheels.

For further comprehension of the invention, and of the objects and advantages thereof, reference will be had to the following description and accompanying drawing, and to the appended claims in which the various novel features of the invention are more particularly set forth.

In the accompanying drawing forming a material part of this disclosure:

Fig. 1 is a front view of a bank constructed in accordance with this invention.

Fig. 2 is a side view of the bank.

Fig. 3 is a front view of the mechanism of the bank.

Fig. 4. is a view, looking at the left side of Fig. 3, with the arm removed.

Fig. 5 is a view, looking at the right side of Fig. 3.

Fig. 6 is a section on the line 66 of Fig. 5.

Fig. '7 is a view similar to Fig. 5 showing a modification of the invention employing cam wheels having rubber friction surfaces rather than toothed surfaces.

The bank of the present invention is to be employed a a device to teach a child to save, specifically to save from one Christmas to another, so that he will have money to use at Christmas time. As a reward for saving, each time that a coin is deposited, the bank plays a tune, such as Jingle Bells, a well known Yuletide song.

The body H] of the bank is a resemblance of the well known figure of the imaginary person known as Santa Claus. The body I0 is stationary, except for the right arm H, which forms part of a mechanical mechanism. The mechanism is best shown in Figs. 3 to 6. Santa Claus carries a basket l2 on his back at his right shoulder. The top of this basket is funnel-shaped and the funnel contains a cross slot l4 so that when a coin is dropped into the funnel, the funnel will guide it through the slot 14 into the interior of the basket. The basket is provided at its bottom with a door I5 having a lock IS. The arm II is in bent position and the fingers l1 and thumb Iii form a horizontal slot for receiving a coin indicated by dot and dash lines IS in Fig. l. The mechanism swings the arm I I upwardly until the coin l9 drops by gravity into the basket I2.

The mechanism of the bank consists of a base plate 20 which fits vertically into the body Ill and extends forwardly and rearwardly so that the broad sides of the plate correspond to the right and left sides of Santa Claus.

The music box 2! is bolted to the side of plate 20 facing arm H, hereafter called the right side, since arm H is the right arm. It has the usual watch spring 22 on shaft 23 which extends through the plate 20 and out through the left side of Santa Claus. Shaft 23 is a composite afiair, consisting of the shaft on which the watch spring is actually wound, and extensions thereof, but for simplicity one number is applied to the entire composite shaft. A key 24 i secured to the outer end of shaft 23 for winding up the spring 22.

The watch spring 22, through suitable gearing 25, rotates a drum 26 having pins 21 which pick the tines 28 of the musical element 29 of the device. A large cam wheel 30 is secured on shaft 23 at the left side of plate 20. Wheel 30 has two cams 3|, provided with peripheral teeth 32, the cams being spaced by recesses 33.

A shaft 34 is mounted on the plate 20 above shaft 23 and extends through and beyond plate 26 at both sides thereof. On the left side it has secured thereto a segment cam wheel 35 having peripheral teeth 36 for coacting with the teeth 32,

the first tooth, designated 31, being radially longer than the other teeth 36. Shaft 35 is freely rockable, being rocked in one direction by the cam wheel 35, and being returnable in the other direction by a coil spring 38 wound around shaft 35- between plate 20 and cam wheel 35 and having one end anchored in plate 28 and the other end anchored in gear 35. The return movement is limited by a yieldable abutment consisting of a bracket 39 bolted to the plate 20 and supporting a spring pressed plunger 46, the spring 41 of which can be compressed when necessary, as will presently appear. of shaft 34.

Arm I l is secured on the right end The operation of the musical bank is as follows:

Assuming that the watch spring 22 is run down, the arm I I will be in the position shown in Figs. 1 and 3 and the gear 35 will be in the position shown in Fig. 5. A child having a coin to deposit will first crank the mechanism by turning the handle 24 to wind the spring 22. He will release the handle 24 when it i up and down, which will be a position such that when teeth 32 engage teeth 36 and start the drum 26, the song to be played will start at the beginning. The drum will be provided with pins so it will play the tune twice for each revolution, once by each cam of the cam wheel.

When the handle 24 is released, the mechanism will immediately be in motion so the child will immediately put the coin in the slot provided by the fingers l1 and thumb [8. There will be an idling period which provides for this, as can be seen from Fig. 5. That is, when the handle 24 is vertical, teeth 32 will be spaced from tooth 31. The drum 26 will have an unpinned portion so that no tune is played during this idling period.

The first pin on the drum will hit the first tine 26 at about the same time that the first tooth 32 hits the tooth 31. Since tooth 31 is long, it will not mesh but will fit outside the first tooth 32, assuring that the other teeth 32 and 36 mesh correctly. There are the same number of teeth 32 and 36. When the last tooth 32 passes the last tooth 36, the song will be ended and another unpinned area on drum 26 reached. Coil spring 38 will swung gear 35 back as soon as teeth 32 are out of the way, the long tooth 31 swinging through the clearance provided by the adjacent recess 33. The abutment 40 will stop the gear 35 in position to be engaged by the next tooth 32 coming up, which will be the first tooth 32 of the next cam of the cam wheel. The song will be played again, and this will continue until the spring runs down.

As the cam wheel 35 turns, so will arm ll swing, raising the coin over Santa Claus right shoulder until it can drop by gravity, which dropping will cause it to fall into the basket as aforedescribed.

When the handle 24 is turned to wind the spring 22, the long tooth 3'! must be cleared as the teeth 32 run backward over it. This is accomplished by the compression of the spring 4| which permits the withdrawal of abutment 40 to allow gear 35 to turn out of the way of the cams of the cam wheel.

If it is desired to avoid the use of the long tooth 31, the cam wheels can be provided with peripheral friction surfaces rather than with teeth. Such a structure is shown in Fig. 7. It distinguishes from the first embodiment in that the teeth 32 are replaced by a rubber rim 32 and the teeth 36-41 are replaced by a similar rubber rim 36. These rubber rims engage to cause lifting of the arm H in the aforedescribed manner.

While I have illustrated and described the preferred embodiments of my invention, it is to be understood that I do not limit myself to the precise constructions herein disclosed and the right is reserved to all changes and modifications coming within the scope of th invention as defined in the appended claims.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim as new and desire to secure by United States Letters Patent is:

1. A musical bank comprising a body resembllng the figure of a creature and having arms,

a plate mounted in said body, top and bottom shafts passing through said plate and extending beyond both sides thereof, one of said arms being mounted on one end of said top shaft for rotation, a segment mounted on the other end of said top shaft having a rubber peripheral edge, means urging said segment gear in a direction to lower said one arm, a yieldable abutment for stopping said segment gear in its movement in said one direction, a music box having a spring associated with the end of said bottom shaft corresponding to said arm end of said to shaft, said bottom shaft being rotatable to wind up said music box spring, a key on the other end of said bottom shaft for turning same to wind said music box spring, said bottom shaft being rotated by said music box spring, a cam wheel on said bottom shaft beneath said segment gear and having two spaced cams, each provided with a rubber peripheral edge for alternately driving said segment, said cam wheel running backward over said segment during winding, said yieldable abutment permitting further backward rotation of said segment to clear said cam wheel during winding, the spaces between said cams permitting return movement of said segment at the end of its engagement with each of said cams.

2. An animated bank comprising a hollow body having a hollow coin basket at the back thereof with a coin insertion slot at the top thereof, a shaft rotatively supported through the side of said body, an arm fixedly mounted at one end on the outer end of said shaft to move therewith, said arm having a slot in its free end to receive and hold a coin to be dropped through the slot in said coin basket, a plate mounted within said hollow body at right angles to said shaft and through which the inner end of said shaft rotatively extends, a segmental cam wheel fixedly secured to the inner end of said shaft and having peripheral teeth, a second shaft rotatively mounted through said plate below said first shaft, a second cam wheel mounted on said second shaft below said segmental cam wheel, a motor mounted on said plate on the side opposite said cam wheels and connected to the end of said second shaft to continuously rotate said second shaft and the second cam wheel carried thereby, said second cam wheel having separate cams spaced from each other by recesses, said cams having teeth on their peripheries for meshing successively with the teeth of said segmental cam wheel to rotate said first shaft and raise said arm to drop coins carried by the slot thereof into the slot of said coin basket after which said segmental cam becomes aligned with a recess of said second cam wheel releasing said segmental cam, and resilient means acting when said segmental cam is aligned with a recess of said second cam wheel to turn said first shaft in a direction returning said arm and said segmental cam wheel to their starting position.

3. An animated bank comprising a hollow body having a hollow coin basket at the back thereof with a coin insertion slot at the top thereof, a shaft rotatively supported through the side of said body, an arm fixedly mounted at one end on the outer end of said shaft to move therewith, said arm having a slot in its free end to receive and hold a coin to be dropped through the slot in said coin basket, a plate mounted Within said hollow body at right angles to said shaft and through which the inner end of said shaft rotatively extends, a segmental cam wheel fixedly secured to the inner end of said shaft and having peripheral teeth, a second shaft rotatively mounted through said plate below said first shaft, a second cam wheel mounted on said second shaft below said segmental cam wheel, a motor mounted on said plate on the side opposite said cam wheels and connected to the end of said second shaft to continuously rotate said second shaft and the second cam wheel carried thereby, said second cam wheel having separate cams spaced 90 from each other by recesses, said cams having teeth on their peripheries for meshing successively with the teeth of said segmental cam wheel to rotate said first shaft and raise said arm to drop coins carried by the slot thereof into the slot of said coin basket when said segmental cam is aligned with a recess of said second cam wheel to turn said first shaft in a direction returning said arm and said segmental cam wheel to their starting position, and a resilient bumper mounted on said plate to be engaged by said segmental cam wheel to arrest the return movement of said first shaft under the action of said resilient means.

5. An animated bank comprising a hollow body having a hollow coin basket at the back thereof with a coin insertion slot at the top thereof, a

after which said segmental cam becomes aligned shaft in a direction returning said arm and said segmental cam wheel to their starting position, said resilient means comprising a coil sprin on said first shaft and connected at its ends to the adjacent faces of said plate and said segmental cam wheel.

i. An animated bank comprising a hollow body having a hollow coin basket at the back thereof with a coin insertion slot at the top thereof, a shaft rotatively supported through the side of said body, an arm fixedly mounted at one end on the outer end of said shaft to move therewith, said arm having a slot in its free end to receive and hold a coin to be dropped through the slot in said coin basket, a plate mounted within said hollow body at right angles to said shaft and through which the inner end of said shaft rotatively extends, a segmental cam wheel fixedly secured to the inner end of said shaft and having peripheral teeth, a second shaft rotatively mounted through said plate below said first shaft, a second cam wheel mounted on said second shaft below said segmental cam wheel, a motor mounted on said plate on the side opposite said cam wheels and connected to the end of said second shaft to continuously rotate said second shaft and the second cam wheel carried thereby, said second cam wheel having separate cams spaced 90 from each other by recesses, said cams having teeth on their peripheries for meshing successively with the teeth of said segmental cam wheel to rotate said first shaft and raise said arm to drop coins carried by the slot thereof into the slot of said coin basket after which said segmental cam becomes aligned with a recess of said second cam wheel releasing said segmental cam, and resilient means acting shaft rotatively supported through the side of said body, an arm fixedly mounted at one end on the outer end of said shaft to move therewith, said arm having a slot in its free end to receive and hold a coin to be dropped through the slot in said coin basket, a plate mounted within said hollow body at right angles to said shaft and through which the inner end of said shaft rotatively extends, a segmental cam wheel fixedly secured to the inner end of said shaft and having peripheral drive means, a second shaft rotatively mounted through said plate below said first shaft, a second cam wheel mounted on said second shaft below said segmental cam wheel, a motor mounted on said plate on the side opposite said cam Wheels and connected to the end of said second shaft to continuously rotate said second shaft and the second cam wheel carried thereby, said second cam wheel having separate cams spaced from each other by recesses, said cams having drive means on their peripheries for meshing successively with the drive means of said segmental cam wheel to rotate said first shaft and raise said arm to drop coins carried by the slot thereof into the slot of said coin basket after which said segmental cam becomes aligned with a recess of said second cam wheel releasing said segmental cam, and resilient means acting when said segmental cam is aligned with a recess of said second cam wheel to turn said first shaft in a direction returning said arm and said segmental cam wheel to their starting position.

MONROE J. SINGER.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 272,049 Hoffman Feb. 13, 1883 2,334,472 Bleecker Nov. 16, 1943 FOREIGN PATENTS Number Country Date 37,498 Germany Nov. 13, 1886 

